Florida has executed 19 prisoners in 2025, shattering the state's previous annual record of 11 executions set in 1936. The Sunshine State accounted for 40% of all executions carried out in the United States last year, according to data compiled by the Death Penalty Information Center. Gov. Ron DeSantis began signing death warrants at an accelerated rate beginning in January 2025, transforming Florida into an outlier as most other states have moved away from capital punishment.
Father Dustin Feddon, a priest who has ministered to Florida's death row population for about a dozen years, described the psychological toll of the accelerated pace. "I have become hypervigilant of mortality — of other people dying, not me dying, but other people dying right in front of me," he told ProPublica. The rapid succession of executions has upended his ministry; rather than accompanying men through years of appeals, he now prepares them to die within weeks of receiving a death warrant.
What the Right Is Saying
Supporters of Florida's execution pace say it delivers justice for victims' families and fulfills the will of voters who re-elected DeSantis. "The governor is doing exactly what he promised — upholding the law and ensuring that those convicted of the most heinous crimes face the ultimate consequence," said Florida Republican Party chair Evan Power in a statement.
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody defended the state's capital punishment system as constitutionally sound. "Every safeguard has been exhausted before an execution date is set. These individuals were convicted by juries, sentenced according to law, and have had every opportunity for appeal," she told reporters following a November execution.
Sen. Jay Collins, a Tampa Republican who sponsored legislation expanding death penalty eligibility, argued that the executions serve as a deterrent. "We have an obligation to protect innocent Floridians from violent offenders who have been convicted through due process," he said in a floor speech cited by the Tallahassee Democrat.
What the Left Is Saying
Death penalty opponents argue that Florida's execution surge raises serious concerns about fairness and innocence. "We know that innocent people have been sentenced to death," said Robin Maher, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, in comments reported by multiple news outlets. She pointed to 200 DNA exonerations nationwide as evidence that the system cannot be perfected.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida cited racial disparities in capital cases and the high cost of death penalty litigation compared to life imprisonment without parole. "Every study shows that whether you get the death penalty depends more on the color of your skin and the wealth of your attorney than the circumstances of the crime," the organization stated in a press release.
State Rep. Anna Eskamani, an Orlando Democrat, called for a moratorium on executions pending a review of the state's capital punishment protocols. "We are executing people at a rate we haven't seen since the Great Depression, without adequate transparency or opportunity for meaningful judicial review," she said in a statement to reporters.
What the Numbers Show
Florida executed 19 people in 2025, more than double its previous annual record of 11 set in 1936. The state has carried out 9 executions in 2026 as of late June, more than all other states combined, according to data from the Death Penalty Information Center.
Nationally, 33 states have either abolished the death penalty or not carried out an execution in at least a decade. New death sentences have declined sharply: just 23 people were sentenced to death nationwide last year, down from a peak of more than 300 per year in the mid-1990s, according to Bureau of Justice Statistics.
Florida's death row population stands at approximately 340 prisoners as of early 2026, with dozens awaiting execution dates following DeSantis' accelerated signing of death warrants. The average time from sentencing to execution in Florida has decreased from more than 20 years to under five years for recently executed inmates, according to court records.
The Bottom Line
Florida's execution surge represents a stark divergence from national trends as the state moves toward completing its current death row population faster than at any point in modern history. DeSantis has framed the accelerated pace as fulfilling campaign promises on law and order, while opponents warn of irreversible consequences if wrongful convictions occur.
What happens next: Florida has scheduled multiple executions through the summer months, with all three death watch cells at Florida State Prison currently occupied for the first time in memory. The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear arguments this fall in a case challenging the constitutionality of one execution method used by several states, which could affect future proceedings.
What to watch: Whether other traditionally conservative states follow Florida's lead or whether the national trend away from capital punishment continues despite the Sunshine State's outlier status. Victim families and death penalty abolitionists alike are watching how federal courts handle pending challenges to state execution protocols.